IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/empfin/v16y2009i4p557-567.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The information content of stock splits

Author

Listed:
  • Huang, Gow-Cheng
  • Liano, Kartono
  • Pan, Ming-Shiun

Abstract

This study examines whether stock splits contain information content about future operating performance or whether splits are undertaken by firms to realign their share prices and to improve trading liquidity. In the four years following split announcements, splitting firms do not experience improved operating performance relative to non-splitting firms. Furthermore, stock split signals are not related to future profitability. The positive announcement effect can be explained by lower share prices and improved market liquidity following stock splits but not by split signals and post-split operating performance. Our results show very little evidence that stock splits signal improvement in long-run operating performance and are more consistent with the trading range/liquidity hypothesis.

Suggested Citation

  • Huang, Gow-Cheng & Liano, Kartono & Pan, Ming-Shiun, 2009. "The information content of stock splits," Journal of Empirical Finance, Elsevier, vol. 16(4), pages 557-567, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:empfin:v:16:y:2009:i:4:p:557-567
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0927-5398(09)00018-8
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Fama, Eugene F & French, Kenneth R, 2000. "Forecasting Profitability and Earnings," The Journal of Business, University of Chicago Press, vol. 73(2), pages 161-175, April.
    2. Ikenberry, David L. & Rankine, Graeme & Stice, Earl K., 1996. "What Do Stock Splits Really Signal?," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 31(3), pages 357-375, September.
    3. Amihud, Yakov & Mendelson, Haim, 1986. "Asset pricing and the bid-ask spread," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 17(2), pages 223-249, December.
    4. Nayak, Subhankar & Prabhala, Nagpurnanand R, 2001. "Disentangling the Dividend Information in Splits: A Decomposition Using Conditional Event-Study Methods," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 14(4), pages 1083-1116.
    5. Anshuman, V. Ravi & Kalay, Avner, 2002. "Can splits create market liquidity? Theory and evidence," Journal of Financial Markets, Elsevier, vol. 5(1), pages 83-125, January.
    6. Paul Schultz, 2000. "Stock Splits, Tick Size, and Sponsorship," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 55(1), pages 429-450, February.
    7. Gustavo Grullon & Roni Michaely & Shlomo Benartzi & Richard H. Thaler, 2005. "Dividend Changes Do Not Signal Changes in Future Profitability," The Journal of Business, University of Chicago Press, vol. 78(5), pages 1659-1682, September.
    8. Erik Lie, 2001. "Detecting Abnormal Operating Performance: Revisited," Financial Management, Financial Management Association, vol. 30(2), Summer.
    9. Grinblatt, Mark S. & Masulis, Ronald W. & Titman, Sheridan, 1984. "The valuation effects of stock splits and stock dividends," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 13(4), pages 461-490, December.
    10. Amihud, Yakov, 2002. "Illiquidity and stock returns: cross-section and time-series effects," Journal of Financial Markets, Elsevier, vol. 5(1), pages 31-56, January.
    11. DeAngelo, Harry & DeAngelo, Linda & Skinner, Douglas J., 1996. "Reversal of fortune Dividend signaling and the disappearance of sustained earnings growth," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 40(3), pages 341-371, March.
    12. Brennan, Michael J. & Copeland, Thomas E., 1988. "Stock splits, stock prices, and transaction costs," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 22(1), pages 83-101, October.
    13. Brennan, Michael J & Hughes, Patricia J, 1991. "Stock Prices and the Supply of Information," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 46(5), pages 1665-1691, December.
    14. Dennis Murray, 1985. "Further Evidence On The Liquidity Effects Of Stock Splits And Stock Dividends," Journal of Financial Research, Southern Finance Association;Southwestern Finance Association, vol. 8(1), pages 59-68, March.
    15. Gustavo Grullon & Roni Michaely, 2004. "The Information Content of Share Repurchase Programs," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 59(2), pages 651-680, April.
    16. Greene, William H, 1981. "Sample Selection Bias as a Specification Error: Comment," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 49(3), pages 795-798, May.
    17. Kyle, Albert S, 1985. "Continuous Auctions and Insider Trading," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 53(6), pages 1315-1335, November.
    18. Heckman, James, 2013. "Sample selection bias as a specification error," Applied Econometrics, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA), vol. 31(3), pages 129-137.
    19. Lakonishok, Josef & Lev, Baruch, 1987. "Stock Splits and Stock Dividends: Why, Who, and When," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 42(4), pages 913-932, September.
    20. Yakov Amihud & Haim Mendelson & Jun Uno, 1999. "Number of Shareholders and Stock Prices: Evidence from Japan," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 54(3), pages 1169-1184, June.
    21. J B Heaton, 2002. "Managerial Optimism and Corporate Finance," Financial Management, Financial Management Association, vol. 31(2), Summer.
    22. Loughran, Tim & Ritter, Jay R, 1997. "The Operating Performance of Firms Conducting Seasoned Equity Offerings," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 52(5), pages 1823-1850, December.
    23. Easley, David & O'Hara, Maureen & Saar, Gideon, 2001. "How Stock Splits Affect Trading: A Microstructure Approach," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 36(1), pages 25-51, March.
    24. Anand S. Desai & M. Nimalendran & S. Venkataraman, 1998. "Changes In Trading Activity Following Stock Splits And Their Effect On Volatility And The Adverse-Information Component Of The Bid-Ask Spread," Journal of Financial Research, Southern Finance Association;Southwestern Finance Association, vol. 21(2), pages 159-183, June.
    25. David L. Ikenberry & Sundaresh Ramnath, 2002. "Underreaction to Self-Selected News Events: The Case of Stock Splits," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 15(2), pages 489-526, March.
    26. Roll, Richard, 1986. "The Hubris Hypothesis of Corporate Takeovers," The Journal of Business, University of Chicago Press, vol. 59(2), pages 197-216, April.
    27. Barber, Brad M. & Lyon, John D., 1996. "Detecting abnormal operating performance: The empirical power and specification of test statistics," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 41(3), pages 359-399, July.
    28. Hackbarth, Dirk, 2009. "Determinants of corporate borrowing: A behavioral perspective," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 15(4), pages 389-411, September.
    29. Mukherji, Sandip & Kim, Yong H. & Walker, Michael C., 1997. "The effect of stock splits on the ownership structure of firms," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 3(2), pages 167-188, April.
    30. Desai, Anand S & Nimalendran, M & Venkataraman, S, 1998. "Changes in Trading Activity Following Stock Splits and Their Effect on Volatility and the Adverse-Information Component of the Bid-Ask Spread," Journal of Financial Research, Southern Finance Association;Southwestern Finance Association, vol. 21(2), pages 159-183, Summer.
    31. McNichols, Maureen & Dravid, Ajay, 1990. "Stock Dividends, Stock Splits, and Signaling," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 45(3), pages 857-879, July.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Li Eng & Joohyung Ha & Sandeep Nabar, 2014. "The impact of regulation FD on the information environment: evidence from the stock market response to stock split announcements," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 43(4), pages 829-853, November.
    2. Bradford Cornell, 2020. "The Tesla stock split experiment," Journal of Asset Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 21(7), pages 647-651, December.
    3. Nhut H. Nguyen & David Y. Wang, 2013. "Stock dividends in China: signalling or liquidity explanations?," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 53(2), pages 513-535, June.
    4. Walker, Scott, 2021. "Post-split underreaction: The importance of prior split history," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    5. Priyanka Naik & Y. V. Reddy, 2021. "Stock Market Liquidity: A Literature Review," SAGE Open, , vol. 11(1), pages 21582440209, January.
    6. Tadeusz Dudycz & Bogumiła Brycz, 2021. "Why the Par Value of Share Matters to Investors," IJFS, MDPI, vol. 9(1), pages 1-20, March.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Al-Yahyaee, Khamis Hamed, 2014. "Shareholder wealth effects of stock dividends in a unique environment," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 28(C), pages 66-81.
    2. Khamis H. Al-Yahyaee, 2014. "Frequency and Motives for Stock Dividends in a Unique Environment," International Review of Finance, International Review of Finance Ltd., vol. 14(2), pages 295-318, June.
    3. Gow-Cheng Huang & Kartono Liano & Ming-Shiun Pan, 2011. "REIT Stock Splits and Liquidity Changes," The Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics, Springer, vol. 43(4), pages 527-547, November.
    4. Lin, Ji-Chai & Singh, Ajai K. & Yu, Wen, 2009. "Stock splits, trading continuity, and the cost of equity capital," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 93(3), pages 474-489, September.
    5. Ravi Dhar & William Goetzmann & Ning Zhu & EFA Moscow, 2004. "The Impact of Clientele Changes: Evidence from Stock Splits," Yale School of Management Working Papers ysm369, Yale School of Management, revised 01 Sep 2009.
    6. Gow-Cheng Huang & Kartono Liano & Ming-Shiun Pan, 2015. "The effects of stock splits on stock liquidity," Journal of Economics and Finance, Springer;Academy of Economics and Finance, vol. 39(1), pages 119-135, January.
    7. Ravi Dhar & William Goetzmann & Ning Zhu & EFA Moscow, 2004. "The Impact of Clientele Changes: Evidence from Stock Splits," Yale School of Management Working Papers ysm369, Yale School of Management, revised 01 Sep 2009.
    8. Guo, Fang & Zhou, Kaiguo & Cai, Jinghan, 2008. "Stock splits, liquidity, and information asymmetry--An empirical study on Tokyo Stock Exchange," Journal of the Japanese and International Economies, Elsevier, vol. 22(3), pages 417-438, September.
    9. Chan, Konan & Li, Fengfei & Lin, Tse-Chun, 2019. "Earnings management and post-split drift," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 101(C), pages 136-146.
    10. Li, Fengfei & Lin, Ji-Chai & Lin, Tse-Chun & Shang, Longfei, 2023. "Behavioral bias, distorted stock prices, and stock splits," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 154(C).
    11. Pavabutr, Pantisa & Sirodom, Kulpatra, 2010. "Stock splits in a retail dominant order driven market," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 18(5), pages 427-441, November.
    12. Maretno A. Harjoto & Dongshin Kim & Indrarini Laksmana & Richard C. Walton, 2019. "Corporate social responsibility and stock split," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 53(2), pages 575-600, August.
    13. David Michayluk & Paul Kofman, 2001. "Market Structure and Stock Splits," Research Paper Series 62, Quantitative Finance Research Centre, University of Technology, Sydney.
    14. Yagüe, José & Gómez-Sala, J. Carlos & Poveda-Fuentes, Francisco, 2009. "Stock split size, signaling and earnings management: Evidence from the Spanish market," Global Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 20(1), pages 31-47.
    15. Erik Devos & William B. Elliott & Richard S. Warr, 2018. "The Propensity to Split and CEO Compensation," Financial Management, Financial Management Association International, vol. 47(1), pages 105-129, March.
    16. Bill B. Francis & Iftekhar Hasan & Mingming Zhou, 2013. "The effects of stock splits on the bid-ask spread of syndicated loans," International Journal of Banking, Accounting and Finance, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 5(1/2), pages 159-187.
    17. Arie E. Gozluklu & Pietro Perotti & Barbara Rindi & Roberta Fredella, 2013. "Removing the Trade Size Constraint? Evidence from the Italian Market Design," Working Papers 493, IGIER (Innocenzo Gasparini Institute for Economic Research), Bocconi University.
    18. Gow-Cheng Huang & Kartono Liano & Ming-Shiun Pan, 2006. "Do stock splits signal future profitability?," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 26(4), pages 347-367, June.
    19. Louis, Henock & Robinson, Dahlia, 2005. "Do managers credibly use accruals to signal private information? Evidence from the pricing of discretionary accruals around stock splits," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 39(2), pages 361-380, June.
    20. Nhut H. Nguyen & David Y. Wang, 2013. "Stock dividends in China: signalling or liquidity explanations?," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 53(2), pages 513-535, June.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:empfin:v:16:y:2009:i:4:p:557-567. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/jempfin .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.